Tube lamp socket fixture with hinged cover panels



A ril 1, 1969 J. w. AMIS, JR, E L 3,435,716

TUBE LAMP SOCKET FIXTURE WITH HINGED COVER PANELS Filed Oct. 5, 1967Sheet 1 of 2 INVENTORS JAMES M AMIS J2. BY JAMES 5. 30350 ATTORNEYS TUBELAMP SOCKET. FIXTURE WITH HINGED COVER PANELS A ril 1, 1969 J. w. AMIS,JR, ET AL Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 5, 1967 INVENTORS JAMES M A/V/S JE.

JAMES B DOBS'ON ATTORNEYS nited States Patent O 3,436,716 TUBE LAMPSOCKET FIXTURE WITH HINGED COVER PANELS James W. Amis, Jr., Bellevue,and James B. Dobson,

Seattle, Wash., assignors to Korry Manufacturing Co.,

Seattle, Wash a corporation of Washington Filed Oct. 5, 1967, Ser. No.673,038 Int. Cl. Hlr 33/10 US. Cl. 33954 15 Claims ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE A socket structure for tubular electric lamps including asocket housing with bottom, end and two side walls. A cover system isremovably attached through grooves and ribs to the housing to form a topcover panel and a terminal cover panel which are connected to oneanother by a hinge. The top cover panel may be articulated about thehinge to permit insertion or removal of the end of a tubular electriclamp. The terminal cover panel can be articulated about the hinge toprovide easy access to the terminal connections at one end of the sockethousing. In the preferred form the cover system is one piece with thehinge formed by molding a transverse groove into the cover piece betweenthe top cover panel and the terminal cover panel portions.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention This inventionrelates to an improved electrical lamp socket structure and moreparticularly to a socket assembly for tubular electric lamps whichincludes a cover system permitting access to the socket chamber forinstalling and removing lamps and also allows easy access to anotherwise covered terminal portion of the socket housing for installingor replacing electrical wiring.

Description of the prior art While it is acknowledged that there areseveral electric tube lamp socket designs known which provide relativelyeasy access to the socket for installation or removal of lamps andeffective shielding for the electrical connections to the socket, untilthe development of the socket structure of the instant invention alow-cost reliable socket has not been available which provides easyaccess to the socket to permit rewiring and relamping. It is thereforethe principal object of the instant invention to provide a generallyimproved lamp socket structure which is low in cost, reliable inoperation, and provides structural features permitting easy access tothe lamp chamber and terminal portion of the receptacle.

It is a further object of the instant invention to provide a lampreceptacle having a simple design utilizing the minimum number of partswhich together form a compact, vibration-resistant light socketstructure suitable for aircraft installations.

It is yet a further object of the instant invention to provide a lampreceptacle formed from two unitary pieces of insulating material whichcooperate together to provide long life, reliable and safe operation ofthe receptacle while providing easy insertion and removal of the lampswithout exposure of the electrical terminal portion of the device.

It is a still further object of the instant invention to provide agenerally improved lamp receptacle which includes a cover assembly of adesign which allows easy access to the terminal wiring and connectionswithout opening the lamp chamber or otherwise disturbing the installedlamp.

ice

It is a related object of the instant invention to provide a coverassembly for a lamp socket made of a unitary piece of insulativematerial including a unitary hinge portion which permits relativehinging of one panel of the cover assembly relative to the other.

Another related object of the instant invtntion is to provide a coverassembly for a lamp socket which includes unitary detent members forholding the cover assembly in its various desired positions.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an improvedlamp socket and terminal block structure which increases the ease ofaccess to the socket chamber for removal and replacement of the lampsand the ease of access to the socket terminal portion for removal andreplacement of the wiring terminals. In its preferred form the sockethousing includes longitudinally extending groove means which areslidably engaged by correspondingly shaped ribs formed in the side edgesof the cover assembly. The panels of the cover assembly are hingedtogether so that one panel covers the open top of the lamp sockethousing until this top panel is articulated about the hinge to permitthe tubular light to be removed from or inserted into the lamp chamberportion of the socket. In a like manner the terminal panel covernormally is disposed to cover the terminal connectors at the terminalblock end of the socket housing. If, however, access to the terminals isdesired, the terminal cover panel may be articulated about the hinge toprovide easy access to the wiring terminals. One particularly uniquefeature of the instant invention is the use of a slidable, articulativeunitary member for the cover assembly incorporating a transverse groovein the unitary member defining a hinge dividing the member intorelatively articulative panels.

These and other features and advantages of the invention will becomemore fully apparent through the following detailed description thereof,which is to be read with reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a partial isometric view of a preferred embodiment of theinvention showing the manner in which the socket is used to hold atubular lamp;

FIGURE 2 is an end elevation view looking into the end of the socket ofthe instant invention through lines 2-2 of FIGURE 1 with the lampremoved;

FIGURE 3 is a side sectional view of the socket of the instant inventionas seen from lines 3-3 in FIGURE 2 with the end of the lamp illustratedin its normal position within the socket;

FIGURE 4 is a partial isometric view of the socket of the instantinvention showing the raised position of the terminal cover;

FIGURE 5 is a partial side elevation view, with some parts shown insection, of the socket and lamp shown in FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is an exploded partial isometric view of the socket and lamp inaccordance with the instant invention illustrating the position of theraised top cover panel for insertion or removal of the tubular lamp;

FIGURE 7 is a partial side section view of the lamp end socket as shownin FIGURE 6;

FIGURE 8 is an exploded isometric view of the socket assembly inaccordance with the instant invention; and

FIGURE 9 is a fragmentary end elevation view, partially in section,showing a modification in which the cover groove configuration of thesocket differs from that in the embodiment shown in FIGURES 1 to 8.

3 DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS With more particular detail,reference is directed to FIGURE 1 which discloses a typical installationutilizing the improved socket and terminal block structure 1 of theinstant invention. As shown, the tubular electric lamp is supportedwithin the socket housing which is enclosed by cover assembly 40.

For simplicity in describing and claiming, relative directions such asupper, lower, longitudinal, and transverse will be made with referenceto the attitude of the socket structure 1 as Shown in the drawings withthe understanding that the structure 1 could be installed in variousother positions.

FIGURE 2 shows an end elevation view of a typical installation of thesocket structure 1 with the tubular electric lamp 5 being removed fromthe socket chamber 20. As shown, a support frame 3 holds the sockethousing 10 in place through suitable mounting screws 4 which areinserted through the support frame 3 into the bottom wall 12 of thesocket housing 10. While being shown as a unitary molded article, thesocket housing 10 could be composed of individual elements including thebottom wall 12 having side edges 14 to which are joined the upstandingside walls 16 and 17. The socket chamber end wall 26, upstanding sidewalls 16 and 17, bottom wall 12, and the cover assembly 40 encompass anddefine the socket chamber into which one end of the electric lamp 5 isinserted. Electrical connections are provided for the lamp 5 throughcontact springs 28 mounted in the end wall 26 of socket housing 10.

The position and configuration of the various components of the socketstructure 1 are shown in FIGURE 3. This figure shows in more detail theconfiguration of the contact springs 28 for making electrical contactthrough the ring connector 7 and button connector 9 which are separatedby insulator 8 and mounted at one end of the glass tube 6 of theelectric lamp 5. The contact springs 28 are supported by terminal postscrews 29 which pass through terminal apertures 27 in the end wall 26.

As shown in FIGURES 1-3, the socket chamber 20 is enclosed by means ofthe socket housing 10 and the cover assembly so that the electric lamp 5is held in place and in contact with the contact springs 28 in thesocket chamber 20. In addition, the terminal post screws 29 areprotected and covered by means of the dihedral shaped terminal panel 55of the cover assembly 40.

For a better understanding of the significant features of the componentsof the socket structure 1 reference is now made to the explodedperspective view shown in FIGURE 8. The socket housing 10 may includemounting apertures 13 formed in its bottom wall 12 for fasteningengagement with mounting screws 4. Since upstanding side walls 16 and 17are mirror images of one another, a more detailed description will bemade of side wall 16 bearing in mind that side wall 17 is of acomplementary structure. Toward the upper edge of side wall 16 there isformed a grooved ledge 22 and a grooved ridge 23 which together define alongitudinally extending groove 24. To add rigidity to the sockethousing, end wall 26 spans transversely and connects at its ends withthe two side walls 16 and 17. Terminal apertures 27 are formed in thebody of end wall 26 for passage therethrough of the terminal post screws29 for securing to the end walls 26 the electrical contact springs 28.

With continued reference to FIGURE 8, the structure and features of thecover assembly 40 are noted. Basically, cover assembly 40 includes twopanels; the top panel 42, is connected by hinge means 50 to terminalpanel 55. Top panel 42 has a front edge 43, side edges 44, rear edge anda lower surface 46. The side edges 44 are extended to form first ribmeans 47 having a size and shape suitable for insertion and longitudinalsliding along and within groove 24 in the socket housing 10. Near therear edge 45 and extending outwardly and downwardly from lower surface46 are first detent members 48, the purpose of which will be explainedlater.

As shown in FIGURE 8, the terminal panel 55 includes the front edge 56,side edges 57 and rear edge 58. The lower surface '59 of panel 55includes second detent members 61, which are similar in size and shapeto first detent members 48. Side edges 57 form second rib means 60 whichare shaped for longitudinal sliding within groove 24 in the sockethousing 10. Hinge means 50 joins the top panel 42 with the terminalpanel 55 in such a way that the panels can articulate about the hingerelative to one another. As shown, hinge means 50 is formed by cutting atransverse groove 51 into the lower surfaces 46 and 59 of panels 42 and55. The groove 51 is deep enough to provide the flexibility utilizingthe remaining material as a web connector 52 between panels 42 and 55.In one specific embodiment the groove 51 has a radius of 0.05 inch withthe web connector '52 having a minimum thickness of 0.010 inch. In thisparticular case the cover assembly 40 was formed from injection moldinggrade polypropylene. This material permits the hinging action literallyhundreds of thousands of times without fatigue, provided that the fibersof the polypropylene extend at right angles to the hinge line.

The end portion 65 of terminal panel 55 extends downwardly from the rearedge 58 and includes a front surface 66, the rear surface 67.

To assemble the socket 1 so that it assumes the form shown in FIGURE 1,the cover assembly 40 is positioned to align first and second rib means47 and 60 with the grooves 24 in the socket housing 10. The panels 42and 55 are then pushed longitudinally until the end portion 65 engagesside wall extensions 33 of the socket housing 10 and the front surface66 engages the terminal divider 35 and bottom wall extension 36 both ofwhich project rearwardly from end wall 26. In order for this closureoperation to take place, the first and second detent means 48 and 61 areforced over the upper edge 31 of the end wall 26. Edge 31 lies in orbelow the plane established by groove ledges 22 in the side walls 1 6and 17. Since the detents 48 and 61 are rounded, this forcing does notrequire an unreasonable amount of force.

Once the closure operation has been completed, the cover assembly 40 isin the normal position as shown in FIGURES 1-3. As shown, a wiring space37 is defined between the rear surface 32 of end wall 26 and the frontsurface 66 of the end portion 65 of terminal panel 55. In the normal orfirst condition, the socket structure i1 provides adequate closure forretaining the electric lamp 5 within the socket chamber 20 with positiveconnection through the contact springs 28 to the power necessary foroperating the lamp 5. In addition, the cover assembly 40 providesprotective coverage of the wiring space 37 at the rear end of the sockethousing 10.

In the event that it is necessary to replace the wiring originallyinstalled or remove the wiring servicing socket structure 1, it ispossible, using the protective terminal block and end socket structureof the instant invention, to make such changes quite easily withoutdisturbing the tubular lamp 5. This is shown in FIGURES 4 and 5, whichmay be characterized as illustrating the second, i.e. rewire conditionof the socket structure 1. As shown in FIGURE 4, cover assembly 40 hasbeen moved in the direction of the arrow rearwardly along the groove 24.At this approximate position, the second rib means 60 of panel 55 arevirtually free of the groove ridge 23, which extends along the sidewalls extensions 33, so that the terminal cover 55 may be liftedupwardly to rotate about hinge '50 providing easy access to terminalpost screws 29 and power wires 70 Without interference between thesecond rib means 60 and the groove ridge 23. At this point also thefirst detent means 48 engage the forward edge 31 of the end wall 26 soas to cause a requirement for additional pulling force before additionalmovement of the cover assembly 40 can be made in the rearward direction.

It should be noted that the second detent means 61 in the normalcondition, as shown best in FIGURE 3, is positioned so that they contactthe forward edge 31 of the end Wall 26 requiring an additional initialpulling force to move the cover assembly from its normal position asshown in FIGURES 1-3 to the rewire position as shown in FIGURES 4-5.

The third condition or position of socket structure 1 is shown inFIGURES 6 and 7 and this condition may be characterized as the relampcondition. To reach this condition from the position shown in FIGURE 1it is merely necessary that a lifting force be applied to the front edge43 of top panel 42 to spring the first rib means 47 out of the grooves24 in the upstanding sidewalls -16 and 17 of the socket housing 10.Since there is no forward end wall in the socket housing 10 the inherentflexibility of the forward end of the side wall 16 and 17 permits thespring-like action without requiring an undue amount of force. It shouldbe noted that this operation takes place with the top panel 42 beingarticulated about the hinge 50 without interfering with the position ofthe terminal panel 55. In this manner, the electric lamp 5 can bewithdrawn from or positioned within the socket chamber 20 withoutexposing or otherwise opening the wiring space 37, as shown in FIGURE 7.

To provide suitable insulation, flexibility and durabilitycharacteristics required for the service life of the socket structure 1,it has been found that an excellent material for both the cover assembly40 and the socket housing 10 is provided by injection molding gradepolypropylene having nonburning characteristics. Synthetic plastic andother suitable insulating materials which can be molded or formed intothe structure described above may be suitable for this purpose as well.

It has been found that it is possible to expose the wiring space 37without fully retracting or sliding the cover assembly 40 rearwardly tothe position shown in FIG- URE 4. This is done by applying anarticulating force to terminal end portion panel 65 of such an amountthat the second rib means 60 spring out of the groove 24 in the sidewalls 16 and 17. Thus, the requirement that the cover assembly be slidrearwardly from the normal position prior to exposing the wiring space37 is one of preference rather than being a critical requirement. If itwere found that the sliding requirement is critical or otherwiseimportant, it would be an easy matter to redesign the second rib means60 and at least the rear portion of the groove 24 to resist any suchspring release of the terminal panel 55 from the grooves 24. A mostobvious expedient would be to extend transversely the second rib means60 and to make groove 24 deeper.

Another modification 40' is shown in FIGURE 9 and includes the provisionof a modified groove 24 formed by downwardly extending ridge 25 whichacts against the upper extending tab 63 of the modified second rib means60' to resist any upward rotation of the terminal panel 55 out of themodified groove 24. Thus formed, the modified cover assembly would beextremely difficult to spring out of the modified groove 24'.

It is therefore seen that we have disclosed a generally useful andadvantageous socket assembly which is easy to fabricate while providingsimple access to the socket chamber 20 for replacing tubular lights aswell as providing simple access to wiring space 37 for installing orchanging wiring connections. This simplicity of design reaches itsgreatest advantage in the configuration of the cover assembly 40 whereinthe hinge means is formed by the transverse groove 51 so that the coverassembly 40 consists of a unitary piece.

What is claimed is:

1. A protective terminal block and end socket for tube lamps comprising:

an insulative receptacle having generally parallel sides joined by aconnecting bottom and one end wall and adapted to accommodate theterminal end of a tube lamp in the chamber formed between said sides andto retain lamp terminal contact elements including connector meansextending through said end wall for access on the exterior face thereof,and

removable cover means for said receptacle including rib means,

said receptacle side walls defining groove means shaped to slidablyreceive said rib means therein for maintaining said cover in positionthereon,

said cover means including a top panel portion and a rigid dihedralterminal panel overlying said end wall to shield said connector meansand joined to the top panel portion of said cover by hinge meanspermitting relative hinging movement between said top and terminalpanels about a transverse line extending between said receptacle sides,

said side grooves being defined by flexible material permitting said toppanel to be forced away from said bottom wall springing a portion ofsaid rib means out of said groove means so that said top panel isarticulated about said transverse hinge line to permit insertion andremoval of said lamp end from said socket chamber while at the same timesaid terminal panel continues to shield said connector means.

2. The combination defined in claim 1, including:

detent means extending from said cover means toward said bottom wall onboth sides of said transverse hinge line,

in the normal closed and relamp conditions of said socket and covermeans, a portion of said detent means is positioned,

in contacting relationship with said end wall to resist thelongitudinally sliding of said cover means along said grooves.

3. The combination defined in claim 2 wherein:

said detent means under sufiicient longitudinally applied force permitsaid cover means to be moved along said grooves in a direction towardsaid end wall until reaching a rewire position, at which point a portionof said detent means contacts said end wall resisting further movementalong said groove permitting the rib portion of the terminal panel to besuificiently clear of said groove to allow said terminal panel toarticulate about said hinge line to permit access to said connectormeans without removing said top panel from its closure position oversaid lamp chamber.

4. The combination defined in claim 1, wherein:

said receptacle is of integral one-piece construction, and

said cover means is of integral one-piece construction,

both said receptacle and cover means are formed of a synthetic plasticmaterial,

said hinge means comprising a connecting web portion of reducedthickness defining a line of bending therein.

5. The lamp socket structure of claim 1 wherein:

said cover means is a unitary piece of polypropylene,

and

said hinge means is formed by a transverse groove through said covermeans between said top and terminal panels with a web means connectingsaid top panel to said terminal panel permitting articulation betweenthese panels.

6. The socket structure of claim 5, wherein:

said web means is at least 0.010 inch thick and the fibers of saidpolypropylene extend at right angles to said hinge groove.

7. An improved electrical lamp socket structure comprising:

socket housing, cover assembly and electrical connector means incombination,

said housing including a longitudinally extending bottom wall with twoside walls extending upwardly along both side edges thereof and joiningat one end with an end wall which also extends upwardly from said bottomwall and lies in a plane transverse to the planes of said side walls,

said bottom, side and end walls defining a socket chamber to accommodatetherein one end of a tubular electric lamp,

each of said side walls defining a longitudinally extending groove meansbetween groove ridges at the upper edge of said side walls and grooveledges spaced below said groove ridges with the plane of said ledges ofsaid groove in a plane no lower than the plane established by the upperedge of said end wall,

said end wall including apertures,

said electrical connector means being mounted within said socket chamberfor electrical contact with said lamp and including terminal means whichare inserted through said end wall apertures,

said cover assembly including top and terminal panels,

said top panel having two generally parallel side edges including firstrib means,

said terminal panel formed as a rigid dihedral overlying said end wallto shield said terminal means,

said terminal panel having side edges including second rib means,

said first and second rib means formed to be slidably engageable withinsaid socket body groove means,

hinge means joining said top and terminal panel means,

in the normal condition, said top and terminal panel means are held bysaid first and second rib means within said groove means to enclose theupper end of said socket chamber with said terminal panel covering saidterminal means;

in a rewire condition said terminal panel is forced upwardlyarticulating about said hinge to provide easy access to said terminalmeans.

8. The lamp socket of claim 7, wherein:

in a relamp condition said top panel is forced upwardly so that saidfirst rib means spring out of said groove means and said top panelarticulates about said hinge means.

9. The socket structure of claim 7 wherein:

first detent means are formed in the lower surface of said top paneladjacent said hinge, and

second detent means are formed in the lower surface of said terminalpanel adjacent its forward edge and said hinge.

10. The socket structure of claim 9 wherein:

said first and second detent means are forward of said top edge of saidend wall in said normal condition.

11. The socket structure of claim 9 wherein:

said first detent means engages said top edge of said end wall in saidrewire condition.

12. The lamp socket structure of claim 7 wherein:

said socket housing includes extensions beyond the rear surface of saidend wall including a terminal divider and a bottom wall extension;

said terminal panel in said normal and relamp conditions engages saidterminal divider and bottom wall extension with its forward surface tofurther divide said terminal space defined between said forward surfaceof said terminal panel and the rear surface of said end wall.

13. The socket structure of claim 7 wherein:

at least the rear end portion of said groove means in said sockethousing includes a downwardly extending retainer ridge, and

said second rib means of said terminal panel includes an upwardlyextending tab means alOng its edge formed to abut said retainer ridge toresist upward movement of said terminal panel while said rib me ans isinserted into said housing groove means.

14. A protective terminal block and end socket for tube lamps comprisingan insulative receptacle having longitudinally extending parallel spacedsides joined by a connecting bottom and a transverse end wall, saidreceptacle being adapted to accommodate the terminal end of a tube lampin the space formed between said sides and to retain lamp terminalcontact elements including connector means extending through said endwall for access on the exterior face thereof, and removable cover meansfor said receptacle including a top panel normally covering said spaceand a rigid end panel of dihedral form including a top portion normallycoplanar with and hingedly joined to the top panel along a common edgeextending transversely to said sides and an end portion depending fromsaid top portion and normally covering said end wall so as to shieldsaid connector means, and longitudinally extending guide means on thereceptacle sides engageable with associated longitudinally extendingguide means on the longitudinal edge of the cover means top panel andthe end panel top portion, and guiding said cover means for longitudinalsliding retraction thereof from normal position on the receptaclethrough a displacement at least sufficient to disengage the guide meansof the top portion of the end panel and thereby free the end panel to beswung outwardly on its hinge connection to the top panel.

15. The combination defined in claim 14, wherein the guide means of onepanel are formed in relation to the associated guide means on thereceptacle sides to be foreibly disengageable therefrom in a transversedirection accompanying manual swinging of such panel out of its normalposition on the receptacle about its hinged connection with the otherpanel.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,268,446 12/1941 Gaynor 339--54FOREIGN PATENTS 1,072,424 6/1967 Great Britain.

MARVIN A. CHAMPION, Primary Examiner.

J. H. McGLYNN, Assistant Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.-R.

